I come to the source of all knowledge, even though it is far off topic.
I'm supposed to be applying a layer of "self-leveling" (actually self-smoothing and needs help leveling) to the kitchen floor in preparation for vinyl tiles.?ÿ The mixing and coverage instructions don't seem consistent.?ÿ It's Ardex or Henry 549 Feather Finish.
There is approximately a 2.2 : 1 ratio of coverage area between UK and US brochures. Somebody mixed up pounds and kilograms. Which version is right?
A United Kingdom data sheet says
A 11kg bag ... 10m2 at a 1mm thickness. That's 0.91 liters/kg
A 5kg bag will cover 4.5m2 at 1mm thick. That's 0.90 liters/kg
The US version says a 10 lb (4.54 kg) bag covers
33.3 sq. ft. at 1/8?. That's 600 cu in= 9.83 liters = 2.16 liters/kg
or 3.09 sq. m at 3 mm. That's 2.04 liters/kg
How can a company that's been selling this stuff for years have such discrepancies?
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I want to use smaller batches because of its short working time, but I'm not sure how to mix it.
The US mixing instructions say a 10-lb (4.54 kg) bag needs 2.5 quarts (2.4 liters) of water, or to mix smaller batches use 2 parts powder to 1 part water by volume. The UK instructions just say 2 : 1 with no whole-bag data. Do not over-water!
The US numbers imply 5 quarts of powder per bag, but the bag measures out at 3.17 quarts. Using 2.5 quarts per bag is a far different ratio.
You'd think they could be consistent within 10% or so between all the various units.
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Anybody have experience with this stuff?
The UK coverage numbers imply a cured density of 1.1 times water, which seems low for a cement-based product. The US numbers give a density of 0.49, which I just can't believe.
Might just be a coincident but 0.49 times 2.2 equals 1.1 roughly (1.078).?ÿ Is there a kg/lb. thing going on there?
?ÿkg/lb
Got to be. Baffles me how that could go on for years.
That factor doesn't explain the difference in bag vs small batch mix instructions, though, as that ratio is about 1.6
Some time ago I read a Landrover brochure and in the glossy specification section it referred to the powerplant as a "twin-engine diesel". So, I emailed the contact on the brochure and humbly suggested it may possibly be more correct to say a "twin-turbo diesel engine".
Surprisingly, they replied and said they'd pass it on to HQ who would decide if a correction needed to be made. That got me very excited and it took me a couple of years before I gave up waiting for my services to British automotive industry to be rewarded with a free vehicle.
it took me a couple of years before I gave up waiting for my services to British automotive industry to be rewarded with a free vehicle.
I recently spent about 10 hours doing title research because a title company "didn't have time" to do it after I pointed out a likely defect in the parcel description in one of their title reports.?ÿ They did thank me for doing their work for them, though.?ÿ And I *did* get an invitation to use their research facilities in the future, so there's that.
It's possible that they are referring to different types of mix applications.
1mm thick, is well, very thin and may be applicable to a fairing skim coat to be sanded for an even fairer finish. The 3mm thick may be a genuine pourable self leveller.
Anyway, it's fascinating stuff and there are many satisfying videos online. I would humbly and respectfully suggest that mixing and lugging barrels of this stuff is a young persons gig.
You actually READ the directions?!!?? What??s become of Men.....sigh.... ?????ÿ
Why I gave up directions....
there are many satisfying videos online
There are YouTube videos on how to do EVERYTHING...
@flga-2-2 As I tell my wife, "If all else fails read the directions".?ÿ She doesn't find that at all humorous.
Andy
My wife actually reads and understands the things even without pictures!!! Then tells me which thingys go wherever. ?????ÿ
@flga-2-2
Years ago in a different lifetime I was doing some casual labour on construction of a commercial building for our family. We were installing a roller door and things weren't going too well so the foreman asked me to get the instructions. I found them in the box, got them out of their plastic bag, and gave them to him. He looked at the cover then screwed them up into a ball and threw them into the trash pile and we carried on without them.
@flga-2-2
Hey Sir, I've got one of those, and I used it for some time on the tripod of our base station, until the device broke.
I submitted my issues to the company web site and got a response in a few hours (on Sunday) - quite impressive attention.
The answer didn't impress me. It ignored the coverage question, and said the two mixing formulas are equivalent. They claim there are "20 cups" which would be 5 quarts of powder in a 10-lb bag. I agree that would make them equivalent.
But I set milk cartons next to the bag and say no way, not much over 3 quarts. I measured the dimensions of the nearly rectangular bag and compute 3.2 to 3.6 quarts depending on the allowance for rounded corners.
I'll measure very carefully when I use it to see how much is really there.
